INDIANAPOLIS — Finding the solutions to help kids in the Hoosier state succeed — that’s the goal of the Indiana Youth Institute’s Annual State of the Child Address.
“Some of our youth-serving organizations they take this information back. They have a picture of the exact kid that they have in mind for some. They use the information for their grant reports or grant proposals so they can get more support,” Ashley Haynes with Indiana Youth Institute told WRTV.
The address pulls data from the 2025 Indiana Kids Count Data Book. Some of the figures in the data book show that nearly two in ten Indiana Children struggled with food insecurity in 2022.
The data shows that there was a 19% increase in juvenile delinquency cases from 2022 to 2023.
In Marion County, there were 304 more cases in that same time frame.
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“We went somewhere else that is deemed worse looking for more,” Aaron Green, Assistant Director of TRU Generations Leadership Development Program told WRTV.
Community leaders Brandon Randall and Aaron Green took a group of kids to Memphis and Baltimore. They told WRTV they wanted to learn how those cities find solutions to slow youth violence.
“I wanted our students to see what we are doing here – other people are doing in a different way, and how can we bring in back here,” Brandon Randall Director of TRU Generations Leadership Development Program said.
The goal is simple – to make sure that young people can have their voices heard and be a part of the change.
“How can we stay consistently engaged with them and provide them opportunities – and see what they can really do to make a change in this city,” Randall concluded.
If you are interested in viewing the 2025 Indiana Kids Count Data Book click here.
